Vatican News

Inspired by Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical Magnifica Humanitas, tech leaders, clergy, and educators gathered in Rome for a hackathon to reimagine parish life in the age of artificial intelligence (AI).The event “From Roadmap to Practice” was held at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross on Nov. 7. Following the annual Builders AI Forum that ... read more

Amid the ongoing armed conflict in the Holy Land, Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti, prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches, will make a pastoral visit to the region on behalf of Pope Leo XIV.The Italian cardinal will visit Israel and Palestine from Nov. 16–21. According to a press release from his dicastery, Gugerotti will visit ... read more

Pope Leo XIV held a papal Mass, visited with several Catholic groups and communities, and presided over a prayer vigil in Uruguay on Nov. 7, the first full day of his historic trip to South America. The pope arrived in Uruguay on Nov. 6 and was scheduled to leave the country on Sunday for Argentina, ... read more

A century after the consecration of the first Chinese bishops, Pope Leo XIV praised the Church in China for remaining in communion with Rome.On Nov. 5, the Vatican published a video message from the pontiff during a conference titled “The Universal Face of the Church in China,” held at the Pontifical Urban University in Rome. ... read more

The last time Father Hugo Gabriel Sánchez met Robert Prevost in Chiclayo, Peru, the future pope had just been created a cardinal. In just a few days, that friend, who wishes Sánchez a happy birthday every year and with whom he shared “hearty laughter” when he was Sánchez’s bishop, will return to Peru as pontiff.A ... read more

Pope Leo XIV has chosen community as the theme for the 2027 World Day of the Sick.The Vatican announced the theme on Thursday ahead of the annual celebration on Feb. 11, 2027. It will also mark the 35th anniversary of the day’s establishment by St. John Paul II, which is celebrated on the memorial of ... read more

Pope Leo XIV’s prayer intention for the month of November is for the proper use of wealth.“What is wealth to you? Millions in a bank account? A huge house and a shiny new car? Or perhaps a place in life where you have enough to share with others — where you gather in order to ... read more

VATICAN CITY — Pope Leo XIV leaves Rome on Friday, Nov. 6, for an apostolic journey to South America, his first visit there since his election as pope.The trip will take him to three countries, including Uruguay and Argentina, and culminate in Peru, where he served as a missionary and bishop for about 20 years.Like ... read more

Continuing a tradition begun by St. John Paul II in the late 1970s, Pope Leo XIV visited a cemetery outside the Vatican on Nov. 2 — the day the Catholic Church commemorates All Souls’ Day — to celebrate Mass and pray for those who have died.“We have gathered to celebrate the Eucharist in this place ... read more

ROME — Notre Dame defeated Villanova in the D1 college basketball season openers on Sunday, Nov. 1, with final scores of 74-72 for the men’s game and 99-75 for the women’s. The Eternal City Tip-Off games, held in Rome, pitted two schools with “shared faith-based traditions and championship pedigrees” against each other in the historically ... read more

Pope Leo XIV emphasized that artificial intelligence (AI) can never replace the human person and that AI regulation must continue.“Machines are tools, not persons,” Leo said in his address.The pontiff held a private audience on Friday with participants in a meeting on “The Future of AI: A Dialogue Between the Vatican and the Scientific World ... read more

Pope Leo XIV has approved a reform of the disciplinary rules governing personnel of the Roman Curia, introducing new safeguards for employees facing proceedings for serious misconduct, including the possibility of legal representation and a longer period in which to submit their defense.The changes were approved by the pontiff on Oct. 19 through a “Rescriptum ... read more

Pope Leo XIV has appointed Italian Jesuit Father Giacomo Costa and Salesian Sister Elena Massimi, a professor of liturgy and sacramental theology at the Pontifical Salesian University in Rome, as the new undersecretaries of the General Secretariat of the Synod.The appointments mark a leadership change at the body responsible for overseeing the Catholic Churchʼs synodal ... read more

A conference in Rome this week examined how the Church addressed totalitarian regimes in the 20th century. The conference “The Holy See in the Face of Totalitarian Systems in the 20th Century: New Perspectives and Research Directions” was held at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome from Oct. 28–29. Over the two days, scholars discussed ... read more

Mercedes-Benz, the German luxury automaker, celebrated nearly 100 years of producing the popemobile — the pope’s personal vehicle.To mark the occasion, Pope Leo XIV held a private audience with Mercedes-Benz executives on Wednesday. That same day, the exhibit “A Century of the Popemobile” opened at the Vatican Museums, featuring the first popemobile, gifted to Pope ... read more